L'hibiscus comme peinture

Chapitre 40

"So what if it is? As a man, the Crown Prince should understand," Ao Jun replied ambiguously, the two of them seeming like like-minded lechers. Although Ao Jun was a complete idiot when it came to love, having never been in a relationship and possessing zero emotional intelligence, he'd at least seen how things work out! Otherwise, how had he managed to deal with that woman these past few days?

"Hahaha... I understand, of course I understand, but this Crown Prince would rather 'get to know' Young Master Mo a little better right now." Yelü Ying said meaningfully, taking advantage of Ao Jun's unpreparedness to hug her from behind and breathe into her ear. Her ambiguous expression just now had stirred his heart; she truly moved him more than any woman, a simple, pure attraction, unrelated to competing with Ouyang Jinxuan.

"Yelü Ying, what are you doing? Let go of me!" Ao Jun, snapping out of her daze from the sudden embrace, struggled and shouted angrily. Why was he suddenly hugging her? What was he trying to do? She reached out to remove his hand from her waist, but he grabbed it tightly instead. Now their four hands were intertwined, looking quite...

"It's alright." Yelü Ying, like a spoiled child, hugged Ao Jun even tighter, as if he wanted to meld her into his own body.

"You..." Ao Jun was speechless for a moment. How could this man, a prince of a nation, be so shameless? He was just a child, but his strength was simply too great! She couldn't break free, and the more she struggled, the tighter he held her. She was almost being strangled to death. Did he want her to suffocate? Oh well, a hug wouldn't kill her, but if she struggled any longer, she might really become the first person in history to be held to death. With that thought, Ao Jun stopped struggling.

Seeing that Ao Jun stopped struggling and quietly let him hold her in his arms, Yelü Ying's heart was so happy that he felt like he could fly. This feeling was so blissful. He really wanted to hold her like this for the rest of his life, without thinking about his father, Ouyang Jinxuan, or fame. He only wanted her.

But a question lingered in his mind: why was she letting him hold her so quietly? His nature was such that he needed immediate answers to anything he wanted to know, so Yelü Ying rested his head on Ao Jun's shoulder and asked, "Why aren't you struggling anymore?"

"Yu'er? The Crown Prince is indeed all-knowing, even knowing about Yu'er." Ao Jun raised an eyebrow and retorted, appearing calm and composed on the surface, but inwardly puzzled: What does he mean by bringing up Yu'er at this time?

"I don't want to suffocate to death," Ao Jun answered honestly.

Yelü Ying was taken aback at first, then burst into laughter. She was so cute and honest. Couldn't she just lie to him? Although he knew she didn't really want him to hold her, he didn't know whether to laugh or cry after hearing her answer. Were they really destined to be enemies?

Because her back was pressed tightly against Yelü Ying's chest, she could clearly feel his constant vibrations from laughing. Something seemed to flash through her mind. With the rhythmic vibrations from his chest, Ao Jun felt that his laughter sounded so lonely, so low and heartbreaking.

Since ancient times, the imperial family has been the most ruthless. From the moment he was born, it was decided that he would be the crown prince of a country and the future emperor. His fate was already decided. He had to endure loneliness, he had to endure fratricide, he had to endure intrigue, conspiracy and assassination... Perhaps he was not originally this kind of person, but the environment forced him to be this way. He must be a person with a story.

I don't know why I thought of these things. Perhaps it was because of his lonely laughter, or perhaps it was because of his seemingly warm but actually cold chest.

For a long, long time, Ao Jun was quietly held in Yelü Ying's arms, while Yelü Ying held her tightly and laughed. When Yelü Ying stopped laughing, Ao Jun asked in a low voice, "Yelü Ying, why do we have to fight?" For the dignified Ling Ao Jun to ask such a silly question would surely make her a laughingstock, but she just wanted to ask.

"Hehe... Why fight a war?" Yelü Ying didn't answer, but buried his head in Ao Jun's neck, repeating the question over and over, as if he didn't understand it.

But this only made Yelü Ying seem even more pitiful, like a homeless child, making her want to comfort him and regret asking the question.

"Yelü Ying," Ao Jun called softly. She didn't know what she was saying; she was simply calling his name, as if that could ease his pain.

"Mo Jun, don't talk to me like that. I, Yelü Ying, don't need your sympathy, especially not yours, Mo Jun." Yelü Ying turned Ao Jun around so she was facing him, narrowed his eyes, and said in a deep voice.

"Sympathy? Heh... You, a crown prince of a nation, get whatever you want, do you need sympathy? Besides, aren't we enemies?" Ao Jun's tone returned to its icy coldness, a mocking smile playing on her lips, though inwardly she felt bitter: For someone like Yelü Ying, with his pride and always aloof, to show him sympathy is the greatest insult. Even when covered in wounds at the market, he would hide away to heal, never showing weakness in front of others. But why had she seen this vulnerable side of him? Since he had already shown it, why pretend anymore?

"Hmph, well said, but whether we are enemies or not is still undecided!" Yelü Ying said to Ao Jun with a wicked smile. His change of expression was really quick! But he himself couldn't understand why he would show his true emotions in front of her. He would show the same way in front of his father, because that was the most basic requirement for a crown prince. But now, facing her, who was still his enemy, he could completely relax. Heh... how ridiculous!

"Whether you're an enemy or not, I don't know. I just want to know what you're trying to say. If you keep dawdling, it'll be dawn soon," Ao Jun urged impatiently. Yelü Ying's antics had thrown her into disarray; she figured it was best to leave quickly.

"Haha... Don't you believe I really asked you out because I missed you?" Seeing that Ao Jun seemed to be really angry, Yelü Ying put away his smile and said seriously, "Do you really like that Yu'er that much?"

Do you still want to test her? Okay, then I'll give you a satisfactory answer.

Ao Jun said with deep affection in his eyes, "It's not just liking, it's love, being hopelessly in love is being head over heels in love." How cheesy! I feel like throwing up. This answer is just...unacceptable.

Unexpectedly, upon hearing her answer, Yelü Ying frowned deeply, seemingly worried. How could this be? He should be happy, not worried. He must have misread it. Looking again, Yelü Ying still wore his usual wicked smile. She knew it; she must have misread it.

"Haha... What a wonderful story of falling hopelessly in love, even to the point of dying for a daughter without regret?" Yelü Ying suddenly burst into maniacal laughter and continued to ask.

"To die beneath the peony blossoms, even as a ghost, is still romantic," Ao Jun said with an air of nonchalance, practically ready to wave a fan at him. But the more Yelü mentioned Yu'er, the less he seemed to be testing her; it was more like a warning to be wary of Yu'er!

“Good, good, to die under the peony is to die romantically, even as a ghost… Haha…” Yelü Ying kept laughing and repeating these two lines of poetry, making Teng sound so helpless and so sad.

Ao Jun didn't say anything more, but she felt that his laughter sounded so sad tonight, making her unable to calm down.

Ao Jun's silence made Yelü Ying stop laughing abruptly. He turned around, his back to Ao Jun, and said, "Military Advisor Mo, you may leave!"

Ao Jun remained silent and turned to leave. Only after her figure disappeared into the night did Yelü Ying turn around, hesitate for a moment, and then fly after her in the direction she had disappeared.

"What exactly does Yelü Ying mean?" Ao Jun muttered to himself as he walked towards the military camp.

As the saying goes, don't talk about people during the day, and don't talk about ghosts at night. Ao Jun was just thinking about Yelü Ying's purpose in inviting her out tonight when the "ghost" floated down in front of her.

This startled Ao Jun, but she quickly calmed down and said indifferently, "Does Crown Prince Yelü have anything else to say?"

"My Lord." Yelü Ying suddenly called out with apparent emotion, quickly walked up to Ao Jun, took something out of his pocket, and shoved it into Ao Jun's hand regardless of whether Ao Jun wanted it or not.

Ao Jun stared blankly at the bewildered Yelü Ying. Was she really that familiar with him? And what was this thing? The mechanical engineering student looked at the object Yelü Ying had forced onto her hand; it seemed to be a wolf-shaped jade pendant.

"What does this mean?" Ao Jun snapped out of her reverie, handing back the jade pendant as she asked with a frown. If she remembered correctly, wolves were a shared belief, and the wolf totem was a symbol of the Cang Liao royal family's identity.

"It's nothing, just a gift for you," Yelü Ying said nonchalantly, shrugging. It was as if he wasn't the one who gave it to you.

"I don't want it," Ao Jun said coldly, shoving the jade pendant back at Yelü Ying. Were they really that close that they needed to exchange gifts? Besides, this jade pendant was clearly no ordinary object. They were enemies now; what kind of relationship would it be to accept his gift?

"No one has ever dared to refuse anything I, Yelü Ying, give away. Now that I've given it to you, you should keep it." Yelü Ying angrily shoved the jade pendant back into Ao Jun's hand. That jade pendant was a gift from his father when he was ten years old. He had always worn it, a symbol of his status as crown prince, and his most cherished possession. He didn't know why he was giving it to her; he only knew that he wanted to give her the best of everything.

“But…” Ao Jun still couldn’t accept it and wanted to return the jade pendant to Yelü Ying, but Yelü Ying didn’t give her the chance. With a leap, he disappeared from Ao Jun’s sight.

"How could anyone be so domineering?" Ao Jun could only mutter helplessly, looking at the jade pendant in her hand with a mocking smile. So, what were they? Friends? Enemies? Or a mix of friend and foe?

"Korean wave... I'm just that domineering, hahaha..." A loud laugh echoed through the dark and silent night sky. It was clear that the person was very happy. After laughing for a while, Yelü Ying seemed to have given up his resolve. A worried voice came from above the dense forest and said, "My lord, promise me that you will take good care of yourself. Don't trust the people around you, especially women. Yu'er is staying by your side for a reason. Don't be deceived by her."

After a long while, Yelü Ying had truly left, but Ao Jun remained in the posture of gazing at the sky. The world was so quiet and still, yet Ao Jun's heart was filled with doubt: Did he mean that Yu'er really wasn't sent by him? Then whose person was she? Was she Sheng Chi's person? But wasn't Sheng Chi also Yelü Ying's person? Why would Yelü Ying come to tell her? Was he really just worried about him, or was there some internal conflict between them? Yelü Ying knew nothing about Yu'er's situation before?

Regardless of the reason or the truth, one thing is certain: given the personalities of Sheng Chi and Yelü Ying, although they may be allies at times, they must each have their own ulterior motives and be outwardly united but inwardly divided. Perhaps Sheng Chi did not explain the truth about the Blood Soul Heavenly Stem Eight Trigrams Formation to Yelü Ying, and Yu'er's lifespan is the same as Sheng Chi's, not Yelü Ying's. Even so, there must be spies of Yelü Ying in the Longxuan Camp, otherwise he could not be so well aware of what is happening in the camp.

If things really turn out as she thinks, then... the Blood Soul Technique might be able to break it. Ao Jun slowly revealed a profound and unfathomable smile, and a plan gradually took shape in his mind.

Battlefield Chapter 39: Who Fell into Whose Trap?

All the tents in Longxuan's military camp had their lights off, except for one tent which was still brightly lit. Soft 'bang' sounds could be heard as a figure searched the entire tent thoroughly, finally settling down on the edge of the bed with a gloomy expression, breathing heavily.

"Damn it, I searched the entire camp and couldn't find a single book related to Qimen Dunjia. Does this Mo Jun really know these things? Hmph, judging from her appearance, she's not as amazing as people say." Yu'er sat on the edge of the bed and muttered to herself disdainfully.

Tonight, while Mo Jun was away, she searched through her tent but found nothing related to Qimen Dunjia. She couldn't help but wonder, could Mo Jun, with her impressive but useless skills, truly understand such profound matters? Her master's tasks, besides making it impossible for Mo Jun to stay in the camp, included figuring out how much Mo Jun actually knew about the Heavenly Stems and Eight Trigrams Formation, ensuring she wouldn't ruin her master's plans. But after so many days together, she discovered that Mo Jun had never read any books about it, nor had she mentioned the Heavenly Stems and Eight Trigrams Formation. It seemed she knew nothing about it. Then how had she managed to command the entire Long Xuan army to safely retreat from the formation last time?